In Council with the Looking

Ladies' Mirror, Volume 4, Issue 8, 1 February 1926, Page 41

In Council with the Looking

TN spite of all good resolutions made when summer comes, there are few of us who have been strongminded enough to forego the kisses of the sun and wind, and the end of the holiday season finds us, if not as swarthy as an Ethiope, still in the condition to which Julia reduced

herself when she did “neglect her looking glass and throw her sun expelling mask” away, allowing “the air to starve the roses in her cheeks and pinch the lily tincture of her face,” and with our complexions in a parlous condition, our hair rough and bleached or lamentably greasy, our eyes bloodshot, with an etching of unwelcome lines “in and out and round about.” W 7HILE leading an open air life V V this state of things was not so obvious, but when we settle down to indoor amusements once again, it behoves us to take council with our looking glasses, and after that

somewhat chastening experience, set to work to repair the ravages as best we may. Fortunately the state of health after the holidays are over is usually good, so that care and time will in a great measure remedy matters, though if the neglect is long stand-

ing it will be more difficult to cure, indeed, in so many such cases, mitigation is all that is possible. To take the skin first of all; in the majority of cases, women will find the face, neck, chest, arms and hands are harsh, dry and discoloured in a few cases the face and chest are greasy and burnt as well. The quickest way to make it velvety clear and supple once more is to mask the face at night with a suitable preparation, and to poultice the neck, chest and arms as the French do. Proceed as follows: Wash the face very thoroughly with warm

rain water and soap and apply the selected preparation. The following, which is adapted from a recipe given by Madame de Gence is very good for occasional use: — Take sweet almond oil, 3 ozs.; white wax, 2 ozs. Place these ingredients in a jar which stands in a small saucepan half full of boiling water. When these are melted, add half dram of simple tincture of Benzion drop by drop, and the same quantity of tincture of myrrh in the same way, finally stir in half dram of powdered alum. Mix the whole very thoroughly till it is of the consistency of firm butter. QBREAD it over the face thickly, then paint the surface with a paint brush dipped in flexible collodion. This forms a coating over the grease, and the whole thing will peel off in the morning, leaving the skin soft, smooth and clear, and comparatively free from lines if they are temporary ones only. One zvord of warning, hozvever : the collodion has a good deal of ether in it, and is apt to affect some people unpleasantly for a minute or two if it is breathed in. So do not put it under the nose, and be careful not to inhale it when painting the chin. White of egg may be used instead, with much the same result. Or if preferred the cream itself may be applied and covered with a piece of soft clean rag, with slits cut for eyes, nose, and mouth, and the collodion not used at all. f I 'HE next preparation was used by the beautiful Empress Fulvia to preserve her exquisite complexion when she found Marc Antony’s affections wandering Cleopatrawards, and though it did not attain the end she had in view as regards her husband, there is no doubt that its effect on her skin was highly successful. Wash half-a-dozen water-lily leaves, which are astringent and healing. Boil them in rainwater till they are in a pulp; strain off the water and put it on one side. Melt two tablespoonfuls of white wax, take a tablespoonful of honey, and as mare’s milk is not easy to get, two tablespoonsful of ordinary milk, and mix all together. Bathe the face, neck and arms well with the water in which the leaves have been boiled, then spread the mixture over the affected surface and cover the face with gauze or old linen, and bandage the neck and arms in order to hold it in place. Keep it on for twenty minutes and wash off with rainwater. A MIXTURE of fine oatmeal, honey and lemon juice may also be used, mixed to the consistency of a poultice with milk, bound on and worn all night, washed off in the morning, cold cream well worked in and wiped off and the skin lightly powdered. If the skin is greasy and discoloured, a puree of potatoes spread on and left on for twenty minutes will do good, a French authority says. When remedies of this description are used it is advisable to protect

the hair with a dunce’s cap made of tissue paper, the ingredients being of a distinctly messy description, ruin boudoir caps. Those who, like myself, do not care to take the time an trouble to use these remedies, good though they undoubtedly are, can fall back on calamine lotion applied thickly at night for ten days with thorough applications of cold cream in the morning, both to remove the lotion and to prevent its obvious drying effect, if the skin is dry itself. alone should never be used by fair-skinned women, as it darkens the skin rather. It is not wise to use bleaching agents in too drastic a manner, as they dry and shrivel the skin if used in excess. It is wiser to use them in small doses and take time over the process. It is obviously foolish to expect to repair the damage of weeks in an hour or two. Help nature, and work slowly and surely. There are, of course, many excellent preparations on the market, and if purchased from well-known firms which have a reputation to keep up, will do what they profess to do. If the eyes are bloodshot, as they often are, especially after yachting, they should be bathed night and morning with either hot water that has been boiled, or weak camomile tea. There are also some excellent drops that clear the eyes as if by magic; these, however, must be prescribed "by an oculist. ' I 'HE hair invariably needs atten- -*■ tion after the holidays, and a herbal wash should be used; or, if it is dry and lifeless-looking, there is nothing better than a lotion composed of bay rum, 2ozs.; oil ricini, half dram. This should be well rubbed into the roots twice a week after the hair has been well brushed and combed. The palms are apt to be hard from the after-effects of blisters caused by sport. Soak these in hot oatmeal water for five minutes and then work in a little vaseline for another five. Repeat the treatment every other day till the hands are soft again. Sometimes midge or mosquito bites leave ugly scars which are very disfiguring. These should be shown to a doctor, who can usually mitigate them. f I 'EETH require the greatest care * from the time they are cut, and the wise woman will pay periodical visits to her dentist, if she would have them last as long as possible. They should be cleaned at least twice a day, always at night and after each meal if they are to be kept immaculate. It is best, with a view to keeping the teeth both clean and white, to use a good dental cream alternately with a tooth powder; this latter should not be too gritty or it may scratch the enamel of the teeth. In addition to this, a piece of floss silk should be passed between the front teeth at bedtime, in order to clean the cracks and crannies where the bristles of the brush cannot penetrate.